20 minutes? Every morning? That's a big part of it, I noticed this with my wagon. I drove highway all day and got great mileage for the first half tank or so then got only half that for the rest, that was from warming it up every morning for work and driving 7 miles, let it sit, warm it up, repeat.
I say it's this 20 minute start-up business. I used to let my car warm up for about 10 minutes, scared coz the engine is Al, but I soon learned that you're not doing the car any good, you're only wasting gas.
The best thing to do is start the car, maybe a 30 sec warmup, and start driving it slowly. Do NOT get on it when it's cold, aluminum engines don't like it. Driving around slowly will warm it up faster, and you will actually be making progress toward your destination while you do it.
Remember, your car gets its worst mileage sitting still. You're using gas but not moving the car.
"Der Wahnsinn ist nur eine schmale Brücke/die Ufer sind Vernunft und Trieb"
THAWA wrote:is that really true? I would think it would get worse mileage going slow, 10-20 mph, than idle.
Are you joking?
Mileage is measured in miles per gallon. If the engine's idling with the car stationary, mileage is zero by definition. The only other way for it to approach zero is for gallons to approach infinity.
I'll second (or third or fourth or whatever) the suggestion to just drive it. Just go easy on it -- stay off boost, stay at low engine speeds, etc. A bonus is that it'll also warm up your transmission fluid (which happens very slowly when stationary) and differential fluids (which doesn't happen when stationary).
I remember one time I locked my keys in my old Sport Sedan while it was running . It burned through like half a tank of gas in the few hours it took me to get my brother to come to my rescue.
"Just reading vrg3's convoluted, information-packed posts made me feel better all over again." -- subyluvr2212
You guys are letting your car run for 20 minutes or more in the morning? I have to say that you are honestly pretty dumb.
Carbon build up is a problem to begin with in subaru's. There is no reason to have the car warm up for more than 3-4 minutes at most. Id love to see the caked pistons and valves you have created.
I just warm mine up for about a minute to whenever the idle drops when it's excessively cold and then just shift easy and keep the revs low until she warms up.
You shouldn't have to warm it up so long - it's not an old steam carriage.
Steve
Midnight in a Perfect World on Amazon or order anywhere. The first book in a quartet chronicling the rise of a man from angry criminal to philanthropist. Midnight... is a distopic noirish novel featuring 'Duchess', a modified 1990 Subaru Legacy wagon.
I let my turbo warmup for a few minutes then then shift easy, keeping it under 80k/hour and out of 5th untill coolant temp has stabilized. I love this motor far too much to abuse it
Mark
1991 Turbo Sedan, Aspen White 5MT, Sold RIP
1994 Turbo Sedan, Crimson Pearl 5MT, from British Columbia-no rust!
ciper wrote:You guys are letting your car run for 20 minutes or more in the morning? I have to say that you are honestly pretty dumb.
Dude, there's no need to say such personal things. If you really feel like you have to use the word "dumb" at least use it to describe peoples' actions instead of the people themselves.
But, yeah, I agree that it doesn't make much sense to let your car sit for 20 minutes idling. Unless you're spending those 20 minutes cleaning off all the snow.
"Just reading vrg3's convoluted, information-packed posts made me feel better all over again." -- subyluvr2212
I'm a big proponent of driving cars as they were built to go not sit - they are dynamic entities - joggers, not couch potatoes. Warming up too long is up there with constant traffic or never hitting redline. I hit redline in three gears several times a day, downshift for turns, and corner at over 5k constantly. Keeps the engine clean of deposits and everything. Ever drive an old hearse? (I have. Always wanted one) Anyway, the biggest problem is finding one that runs well. They're always driven so slow that they never want to move. They get lazy like people (that's the reason I'm going with - you scientific unbelievers can keep quiet). An object at rest tends to stay at rest. Make your car exercise and she'll want it and run better for it. But don't take my word - the odometer's got 234k and has only recently given me any kind of driveability issue (a very minor one) with the exception of old fuel filter caused hesitation. Just replace all fluids and consumables on schedule and you shouldn't have to baby it. It's not an Alfa Romeo Montreal.
Steve
Midnight in a Perfect World on Amazon or order anywhere. The first book in a quartet chronicling the rise of a man from angry criminal to philanthropist. Midnight... is a distopic noirish novel featuring 'Duchess', a modified 1990 Subaru Legacy wagon.
ciper - Okay, I agree with that, unless there are some weird circumstances that require it.
turbonator - I was under the impression that it was wide-open-throttle that helped prevent carbon buildup. Idling at 3000 rpm is still very low engine load (very high vacuum).
You say 20 minutes is not long enough -- not long enough for what?
"Just reading vrg3's convoluted, information-packed posts made me feel better all over again." -- subyluvr2212
I hear what you're saying about the cold - mine takes a while to warm up in extreme cold, too (EPA would love it), but I find driving it gently warms it much quicker than sitting at a constant speed. However, if you have driveability problems or something that make it highly unpleasant, do whatever works for you. As long as you hit redline every so often, it should keep it clean.
Slightly off topic: do you think Subaru has carbon build up issues due to rich-leaning fuel maps designed for better response? I had a boss who also loved Subarus (these were EA82's, though) and he said that he always had trouble passing emissions (and this was before they introduced dyno testing). I wonder if maybe it was a hydrocarbon issue. I have seen lots of Subarus burning black. Not that I have any problem passing with mine...
Steve
Midnight in a Perfect World on Amazon or order anywhere. The first book in a quartet chronicling the rise of a man from angry criminal to philanthropist. Midnight... is a distopic noirish novel featuring 'Duchess', a modified 1990 Subaru Legacy wagon.
If your car is taking an extremely long time to warm up, have you checked your thermostat or even replaced it recently.....more then likely it needs to be replaced.
Would that explain why my car takes so long to blow heat in the mornings?
Albeit I do live in eastern canada where -20 mornings mid winter are normal, should it be taking 10 + minutes to warm up the car? (temp guage moves off cold to middle)
yup.....I'd start with a new t-stat and see how things are.
I'm also going to say, make sure you buy one from the dealer, because the non-subaru ones are different and don't work the same. I speak from first hand knowledge.
I don't think that's too far off the mark, but you might want to check it anyway. It does come fully up to temperature and stabilize eventually, right? I know mine can take about 10 mins in extreme cold in I just idle it. Driving takes about 5 (or 2-3 town miles).
Steve
Midnight in a Perfect World on Amazon or order anywhere. The first book in a quartet chronicling the rise of a man from angry criminal to philanthropist. Midnight... is a distopic noirish novel featuring 'Duchess', a modified 1990 Subaru Legacy wagon.
Yeah, it warms up quite nice eventually, colder days it takes 10 minutes or so.
Here's another question, engine and cold weather related...
When I leave my car sit for long periods of time, ei over night or the weekend, when I start it cold, before it warms up there is a ticking sound or knocking from the valves or lifters or something.
Should I be worried about this? It goes away once it's warmed up and runs fine no either way...
. It burned through like half a tank of gas in the few hours it took me to get my brother to come to my rescue.
